Biography

Dr. Han Ki-bum worked as a North Korea analyst at the National Intelligence Service over 20 years before retiring in February 2009 as the third deputy director (in charge of North Korea affairs). After retiring from the service, he worked as a visiting professor at Korea University and a visiting researcher at the Korea Institute for National Unification, And then served as the first deputy director of the NIS (in charge of North Korea and overseas affairs) again from April 2013 ~ February 2016. Since then, he has been working as a endowed Research Fellow at the Institute for National Unification, then as a endowed Research Fellow at the Institute for North Korean Studies, and as a Visiting Research Fellow at the Asan Institute for Policy Studies from January 2024.

Academic Background

- Bachelor in History Education, Seoul National Univ.
- M.A. in Political Science, Korea Univ.
- Ph.D. In Political Science, Kyungnam Univ.
* Doctoral thesis :: The Organizational Behavior and Bureaucratic Politics in North Korea’s Decision-making Process:: Expansion and Retreat of Economic Reform, 2000~09
*publications :: The Bureaucratic Politics of Economic Reform in North Korea(2019.7), Why North Korea fails to Economic Reform?(2023.11), other co-authors.

Professional Background

- North Korea Analysist, Deputy Director, National Intelligence Service
- Visiting Professor, Korea University. Visiting Research Fellow, KINU.
- The endowed chair research fellow in North Korea Research Institute